Second Chances
by Clxarke
Summary: Fix It fic. Ianto miraculously survived the events of CoE. No one knows how or why, but Ianto is determined to find out why his life was spared. Jack lost Ianto once and will never lose him again, no matter what the cost. Janto Centric.
1. Chapter 1

**A/N:(SPOILERS AHEAD)**

**This is my very own "Fix It" fic for the events following the last episode of CoE in Torchwood. I was less then pleased with the outcome of this television show, and, though I tried, cannot get myself to enjoy the newer seasons of the show. The lack of beloved characters has made it impossible to continue, specifically, my favourite character: Ianto Jones.**

**This is a fic I wrote as a substitute for the new season, including one major change: Ianto lives. **

**If you too were angry at the show, feel free to let me know so we can rant about it together**

**If you want to know true anger, you can go to my blog where i've described a huge continuity error in the show, which, if the show had been written correctly WOULD HAVE ALLOWED IANTO TO LIVE.**

**((My blog is listed in my bio))**

**All anger aside, I hope you enjoy this story! **

**WARNINGS: MAJOR SPOILERS!, Mentions of death (obviously), some adult humour and brief mentions of sex.**

Ianto was confused as he woke, not entirely sure why he felt so strange. Like he was forgetting something.

The thing he was forgetting must have been important because he felt fabric being unzipped around his head, and sunlight coating his closed eyelids. He felt a chill, but it wasn't from a breeze. It was him. Like he was just defrosted after years of being encaged in ice.

Then he heard someone crying. They were female, familiar. The tears of someone in mourning. Someone who lost a person close to them. Ianto felt an overwhelming need to comfort them but he had trouble opening his eyes.

That was when he heard another cry. One that rang through his entire being and filled him with dread.

It was Jack. The female was Gwen. They were crying and he didn't know why.

He inhaled a deep breath. The feeling of it startled him and he sprung upwards into a sitting position, his eyes shot open to reveal the horrified looks of his closest friend and his lover.

Gwen screamed, her face pale like she'd seen a ghost.

Jack looked empty, his eyes hollow. He looked like he had his soul ripped from within him.

That was when Ianto realized he had died.

He was supposed to be dead. He remembered it clearly like someone doused him in ice water. The alien poisoned the air. Jack held him. He died.

Now Ianto was alive. Properly alive, breathing and everything. Yet his question remained.

_How?_

"I'm alive." He marveled to himself in horror.

"That is not possible." Gwen observed, looking him over, her puffy, red, eyes wide with disbelief. Ianto detested how she looked at him, like he were a specimen in a petri dish, but he liked it more then Jack's heavy gaze. For once, he wished Jack would just look away. "How can he be—"

"Quiet!" Jack demanded, cutting Gwen off, his voice sounding gruff and hoarse. "Give me your wrist." He said, holding out his hand expectantly. Ianto trusted Jack more then anyone but he still hesitated.

When he finally offered his wrist up to Jack, he noticed the contrast in temperature almost immediately. Jack's hands were remarkably warm, and rough though his grip was gentle.

Jack flinched. "His skin is ice cold, like a corpse," It was Ianto's turn to grimace. "But he has a pulse. Its like his blood is just starting to recirculate."

"Like deoxidation." Gwen supplied. Jack nodded. "This is bloody crazy, Jack. He can't still be alive. There is no way he could have survived that."

Jack met Ianto's eyes again. Their sadness and grief was eating away at Ianto's strength, which he was using to refrain from pulling Jack close and telling him that none of it was his fault.

"When Owen was resurrected," Jack began carefully. "he said he remembered what was on the other side. That he remembered death. Do you?"

Ianto shook his head. The only thing he could remember was dying and waking up again. There was nothing in between, like when you're about to go to sleep but then you blink and its morning. "I don't remember anything between dying and right now. It was like sleeping without dreams. Like a chunk of time is missing." Jack closed his eyes, thinking. "I'm so cold." Ianto accidentally said, cursing himself for lack of control over his words.

Jack's eyes shot open, their pain was easy for him to see. Now Ianto knew what people meant when they said Jack's eyes were older then his body. Those were eyes that saw such suffering and loss. Eyes that were now seeing a second chance.

"Of course you are, your blood flow has been dormant for over a day." Jack informed him, taking Ianto into his arms in an attempt to warm him up. Ianto felt like he was melting under Jack's embrace. Every ounce of body heat ignited a new nerve ending. Gwen joined the hug too, but Ianto didn't mind. Soon they were all crying, unable to believe that Ianto was given a second chance. Ianto was desperate to know, not only how, but why.

Jack gave the order to Gwen to check the rest of the bodies to see if anyone else was still alive, while he brought Ianto to see a medic.

Ianto nearly blacked out, trying to stand up.

"Whoa, whoa, whoa. Take it easy." Jack said, trying to steady him on his feet. "There we go, nice and slow."

"You said that to me before." Ianto recalled, feeling dizzy. "Though that was in a much different situation."

Jack laughed. "You don't have control over what you're saying right now. When you feel better you'll be embarrassed for mentioning our sex life in an innuendo, which, coincidentally, is my job. Come on, lets get you some air."

A paramedic met them outside of the building. They rushed over with an Oxygen Concentrator and put the mask over Ianto's face. He protested at first, the rush of air making the world spin, but his dizziness began to clear up.

"His oxygen levels are extremely low." The paramedic informed Jack, her blonde hair escaping her tightly wound bun and falling in her face. She was gorgeous, Ianto could tell, but for some reason Jack's flirt-with-everyone-he-met mode wasn't on. "We'll have to bring him in to the hospital to give him the proper care he needs."

Jack nodded, squeezing Ianto's hand reassuringly. "Of course." The paramedic went to retrieve a stretcher from her ambulance.

"You have to go." Ianto insisted, though that was the last thing that he wanted.

"What? No, I'm coming with you." Jack replied, pleadingly, like a child being told to wait for their parents.

"You can't, Jack. The 456 are still out there demanding to take children. You have to stop it. You have to save them." Ianto's voice was muffled through the mask but Jack understood him perfectly.

Jack looked pained. "I can't just... I just got you back. I can't leave you."

"Go, Jack. I'll be fine." Ianto waved him away. "Go on, save the world and tell me about it when you're finished."

Jack smiled but his eyes didn't match it. "You have such faith in me."

"Of course I do."

"I didn't save them before." Jack's tone hinted at his guilt, but Ianto could tell the feeling was much more powerful then he let on.

"You will. I know you will."

"I love you." Jack said suddenly. "when you were... You told me that you loved me I didn't say it back. Right after you were gone I realized that I should have. You were always so much more then a warm body to sleep next to. I thought you died not knowing that I loved you and that alone killed me before the poison did."

"I love you too." Ianto said, blinking back tears. "I knew you loved me without saying. You never really were good at explaining your feelings. Good thing I'm smart."

Jack kissed his forehead and Ianto closed his eyes. "Yes, you are."

**A/N: Follow, Favourite, and Review!**


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N: This chapter is on the shorter side, sorry.**

**WARNINGS: SPOILERS FOR CoE! Dark themes.**

Ianto lay in his hospital bed. His eyes were closed and he was drowsily listening to the rhythmic beeps of the machines next to him. The nurses had told him that his body was lacking in oxygen, he was dehydrated, and his brainwaves were faltering every so often. They didn't know how he could still be alive if he was deserted in that state with no sustenance, but he assured them that a man saved him, describing Jack in the kindest way he could without revealing his romantic attachment.

He didn't know how he was alive either. He pondered it through most of the day and couldn't come up with a good explanation. All he wanted was for Jack to come back and tell him that he saved everyone. That he stopped the alien threat and no one they loved had been harmed. It was almost better not knowing, at least he had hope.

That was why he held his breath when Jack walked into the room. He recognized the sound of his shoes and the even pace of his steps.

"Ianto?" There was something different about Jack's voice.

Ianto opened his eyes, planning a sarcastic, yet suggestive, phrase to welcome him, when he saw Jack's face.

He looked so sad. So heart-wrenchingly sad. It broke Ianto's heart.

"Jack." Ianto started, wishing he was strong enough to get up and comfort him. "Tell me."

Jack sat down in the chair by Ianto's bed and held his hand tightly. He closed his eyes and breathed, "We won."

Ianto felt a strong relief wash over him, but Jack was crying. Something was horribly wrong.

"What is it, Jack?" He pried. "You did it, you won. You saved the children."

"At the expense of one." Jack said, his grief was lay out plainly for Ianto to see. Jack didn't have to clarify.

"Stephen." Ianto whispered, and though it wasn't really a question Jack nodded to confirm it nonetheless.

Ianto was heartbroken for Jack. He knew how it felt to watch someone you love die at your hand. He though back to Lisa, though for the first time it wasn't with longing. He didn't want her back. He mourned her memory. He left the yearning to Jack, who just lost a grandson.

"Jack, I know what you're thinking. I know you blame yourself. I know how that feels. I also know that you did the right thing."

"How could you possibly know that?" Jack snapped. "My daughter hates me. My grandson is dead. You're a _zombie_, how could you possibly know?"

Ianto tried to pretend the last comment didn't effect him, but it hurt.

"Takes one to know one, I suppose." Ianto stated with a sigh. "But I do know that there are millions of parents out there that are holding their children tight; who aren't burying empty caskets. You did this. You took that pain away from all of them and took it upon yourself. That is what makes you a hero. You are a hero, Jack. Whether the world knows it or not. You're a hero to me."

Jack met his eyes for a fraction of a moment before rising up off of the chair and kissing him. Ianto's lips were cold, yet not as cold as his wrist had been earlier. To Ianto, the kiss was searing. It was more warmth then he'd been exposed to since he woke up from death. Jack's right hand cupped his face while his other was holding on to Ianto's with a steel grip. Ianto got the message. _Don't let go_.

He wouldn't dream of it.

**A/N: Follow, Favourite, and Review! **


	3. Chapter 3

**A/N: This chapter contains the bulk of the excitement, so far… **

**WARNINGS: SPOILERS! Arguments.**

It was a few days until Ianto was released from the hospital. It took a while to develop a strategy for dodging all the doctor's questions about what left him in that state. In the end he was being driven back to his flat with Jack.

He noticed the vortex manipulator on Jack's wrist. Just seeing it filled him with dread. _He's leaving me_. Ianto thought. _He's finally bored of me_.

The car ride home was the shortest one he'd ever experienced, even with Cardiff traffic. You know what they say; time flies when you've just come back to life and you're trying to make the most of the time you have with your time traveling, immortal, boyfriend.

Jack tried to help him into the flat but Ianto insisted that he was a big boy, he could do it himself. Jack made a suggestive comment about that description and Ianto whacked him upside the head.

Ianto's flat was just as he left it; tidy and organized. He sat down on the couch as Jack hung their coats on the rack.

Ianto went through his mental checklist, testing all of his senses and coming to the conclusion that he was completely fine. Almost as if nothing ever happened.

Jack sat down next to him on the couch without another word. Ianto knew what he was thinking. Jack wanted to talk about it. He wanted to go through the interrogation again for the umpteenth time even though Ianto's answers hadn't changed. Or maybe he was figuring out a way to tell Ianto that he was leaving again. Either way, Ianto was not in the mood to hear it.

"Ianto—" Jack began earnestly. Ianto stood up abruptly.

"You know, I think I'd like a coffee. Fancy a cup?" He offered, walking over to the kitchen area. He grabbed the coffee out of the cabinet and began the process he knew all too well.

That was why he needed it. Not to drink, but because the action of making it was so familiar. It tied him to the part of himself that he knew would never change. It was his gravity, his sense of serenity. His brain went on autopilot, his hands moving on their own accord. He barely noticed Jack leaning on the kitchen island.

"Ianto, I have to tell you something—"

Ianto's hand jerked and the sugar bowl fell to the floor with a crash.

"Shit." Ianto cursed. "Don't worry, I'll get it." He stepped around the sugar and the small splinters of glass to fetch a broom from the space between the fridge and the wall.

"Ianto." Jack said again, but nothing more, testing the waters.

Ianto swept the mess into a pile wordlessly.

Jack tried again. "Iant—"

"Stop saying that!" Ianto snapped.

"Its your name." Jack said calmly. "You're not letting me talk to you."

"Well, maybe I don't want to hear about it right now, ever think of that?" Ianto's eyes were on the ground where he was sweeping, even though there was nothing left to sweep. "Maybe I'm sick of being interrogated about something impossible; something I don't have the answers to."

Jack blinked a few times. "Thats not what I was going to—"

"I know. I know what you're going to say and I'll tell you right now that I'm not happy about it. At all."

Jack reached out and grabbed Ianto's wrist, holding it gently to stop him from sweeping. "Ianto."

"What!" He demanded. His hands were shaking.

"I was going to ask if—"

The coffee machine made a loud, obnoxious beep, signaling that it was done brewing.

"The coffee is ready." Ianto said, wrenching his wrist away from Jack's grip, stepping over the remnants of his sugar bowl, and getting the mugs from the cabinet.

Jack's eyes were closed, praying for patience but Ianto didn't look up to see.

"You said you know what I'm going to say. What do you think I'm talking about?" Jack fixed him with an intense gaze, as if to mentally pry the answer from him.

Ianto slammed his fists on the counter, rattling the silverware and the tea saucers in the china cabinet to his left. His head was bowed and he was hunched over the counter.

"I know that you're... I saw you're wrist. Your Vortex Manipulator." Ianto said through clenched teeth. His jaw seemed to lock in frustration. He was glad to be turned away from Jack so he couldn't see his face.

Jack's eyes widened in surprise. "What about it?"

"You're leaving again." Ianto's voice was low and sad, like he was speaking through a sigh. He didn't have to clarify what he meant, Jack knew what he was referring to. The months Jack spent away with The Doctor. Ianto continued anyway through Jack's shocked silence. "You're leaving to go to a different time, to fight aliens, to save the world. It might seem selfish but I... I want you. Here." _With me_. Ianto stood up straight, turning to face Jack again. "I can't face being alone again, not after what happened. So if you're planning to leave, at least break up with me so I don't have to spend the rest of my life waiting for you to come back."

Jack stared at him weighing the words in his mind, trying to make sense of them. "You... You think I'd ever leave without you? You think I'd give you up just to go risk my life for people who would otherwise have me dead?" Ianto had no response. "You really think I would do that?"

"You've done it before." Ianto said.

"Ianto, I'm sorry I did that to you, but that wasn't what I was trying to tell you."

"What, then?" Ianto asked, his patience worn thin.

"I was going to ask... Come with me."

"What?"

"Travel with me." Jack clarified, his eyes bright with wonder and possibilities. "Explore the universe with me. There is nothing left for me here, Torchwood is all but destroyed; you are the only thing anchoring me to this planet. Come with me. I can show you creatures and civilizations beyond comprehension."

Ianto was dumbfounded as Jack proceeded to extract a second Vortex Manipulator from his pocket. It was small, black, and sleek. Looking more like a watch then a time machine.

"Its the newest model. Literally; I went to the distant future and bought it from the last living vortex manipulator sales man. Its very classy. Very you."

Ianto took it from him gingerly, inspecting the device.

"Jack... I don't know what to say."

"I can make some suggestions. 'Yes' for example, would be a great word to use here."

"I..." He paused, making a final decision. "I will travel with you, Jack. My answer is yes."

Jack beamed, stepping closer to him. He allowed Ianto to set the Vortex Manipulator on the counter before grabbing him by the hips and kissing him deeply. Ianto's hands held Jack's face, cupping his cheeks. He felt slightly dizzy, which the doctors predicted would happen if he held his breath for too long, but kept kissing Jack. The longer it continued the more he was reassured.

He'd never felt more alive.

**A/N: Follow, Favourite, and Review!**


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